Cost of living comparison
El Salvador vs. Sao Tome and Principe Cost of Living Summary
El Salvador is 28.7% more expensive than Sao Tome and Principe overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 22.7% less in El Salvador
- Groceries
-
pay 14.5% less in El Salvador
- Transportation
-
pay 9.3% less in El Salvador
- Housing
-
pay 2.2 times more in El Salvador
- Childcare
-
pay 23.7% more in El Salvador
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 19.3% less in El Salvador
- Clothing
-
pay 99.8% more in El Salvador
The cost of housing, clothing, and childcare in El Salvador are more expensive than in Sao Tome and Principe. Expenses including restaurants, entertainment and sports, groceries, and transportation are lower in El Salvador. Notably, housing and clothing are significantly more expensive in El Salvador.
El Salvador vs. Sao Tome and Principe Cost Breakdown
If you lived in El Salvador instead of Sao Tome and Principe, you would:
pay 22.7% less for restaurants
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
El Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$8.96
STD200K
|
$6.75
SVC59.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$7.89
STD176K
|
$7.00
SVC61.25
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.84
STD41,004
|
$1.14
SVC10.01
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.25
STD27,770
|
$0.83
SVC7.29
|
|
pay 14.5% less for groceries
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
El Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.00
STD22,187
|
$2.53
SVC22.11
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$9.80
STD218K
|
$3.85
SVC33.72
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.87
STD131K
|
$6.71
SVC58.72
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.85
STD108K
|
$2.67
SVC23.35
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$8.89
STD198K
|
$2.83
SVC24.77
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.70
STD37,881
|
$1.88
SVC16.49
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.79
STD17,644
|
$0.63
SVC5.54
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.63
STD36,419
|
$1.18
SVC10.35
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.57
STD34,958
|
$1.56
SVC13.68
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.31
STD29,299
|
$1.33
SVC11.65
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.08
STD23,986
|
$1.49
SVC13.05
|
|
pay 9.3% less for transportation
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
El Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.46
STD144K
|
$4.75
SVC41.60
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$37.50
SVC328.13
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,634.18
STD549M
|
$25,000.00
SVC219K
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.43
STD500K
|
$30.00
SVC262.50
|
|
pay 2.2 times more for housing
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
El Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.91
STD1M
|
$42.50
SVC371.88
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$284.91
STD6M
|
$824.50
SVC7,214.43
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$195.02
STD4M
|
$660.00
SVC5,775.07
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$174.83
STD4M
|
$99.35
SVC869.35
|
|
pay 23.7% more for childcare
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
El Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$228.62
STD5M
|
$162.67
SVC1,423.35
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$2,194.77
STD49M
|
$4,720.00
SVC41,300.50
|
|
pay 19.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
El Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.70
STD37,799
|
$2.00
SVC17.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.26
STD50,442
|
$3.55
SVC31.02
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.26
STD50,420
|
$4.00
SVC35.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$33.92
STD756K
|
$28.30
SVC247.63
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$20.16
STD449K
|
$5.00
SVC43.75
|
|
pay 99.8% more for clothing
|
Sao Tome and Principe
|
El Salvador
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$67.15
SVC587.57
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$75.02
STD2M
|
$47.00
SVC411.25
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$118.33
SVC1,035.43
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$18.36
STD409K
|
$117.00
SVC1,023.76
|
|
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
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